Alleged Hazmat Violations Cost Carrier $455K

In a February 11 press release, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced a proposed $455,000 civil penalty against a freight carrier for alleged violations of hazardous materials shipping regulations.

During inspections of the company’s package sorting facility in Kentucky, FAA inspectors noted that the company allegedly accepted the following non-compliant hazmat packages for air transport:

• Two separate shipments containing airbag modules (which have explosive properties) without a Dangerous Goods declaration
• Two boxes of lithium-ion batteries without proper hazmat labels
• A box containing a one-liter can of paint, without the proper Dangerous Goods declaration
• A box containing printing ink without the proper Dangerous Goods declaration
• A box of fuel control assembly with an improper shipping name and partially obscured orientation arrows
• A fuel/defuel cart equipped with an improperly packaged corrosive battery and without the proper Dangerous Goods declaration

Typically, when we think of hazmat penalties, we think of mistakes made by shippers. In this case, the carrier will pay a penalty for accepting non-compliant hazmat shipments. Penalties like this give carriers a major incentive to reject shipments that do not meet the 49 CFR and/or IATA hazmat standards. 

Ship Hazmat by Air with Confidence        
  
Have questions about what it takes to offer hazmat shipments for air transport? This new video is a great place to start learning about what’s required and who should be trained. When you’re ready to learn more, join us at the Complete Multimodal Hazmat Shipper Workshops, presented in cities nationwide. Build confidence working with the latest hazmat and dangerous goods shipping rules, including updated 2016 49 CFR rules, the 57^th Ed. IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations (DGR), and the 2014-16 IMDG Code. 

Tags: DOT, enforcement, hazmat shipping